Ford staff urge end to police car production, CEO says no

By THOMAS HUONG | 10 July 2020


DETROIT: Some Ford Motor employees have called for the automaker to stop making police cars, in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, according to a report by Jalopnik.

CEO Jim Hackett has rejected the idea, and said that while the company supports racial diversity and inclusion, there is no conflict between doing these things and continuing to make police cars.

Ford claims it commands nearly two-thirds of police vehicle sales in the United States.

Last year, Ford said its line-up of police cars include the Police Interceptor Utility, Police Responder Hybrid Sedan, F-150 Police Responder, Expedition SSV, F-150 SSV, Transit PTV and SSV Plug-In Hybrid Sedan.

Three powertrain options for the latest Police Interceptor Utility include a standard 3.3-liter hybrid, plus available 3.0-liter EcoBoost and 3.3-litre V6 engines.

All are powered by a new 10-speed automatic transmission and feature standard full-time Intelligent All-Wheel Drive and deep snow/sand traction control mode.

Ford Police Interceptors remain the only vehicles in the world engineered to meet Ford’s stringent 120kph rear-impact crash standard.

The federal standard for such testing is 80kph.

Additionally, safety cell construction directs collision force around the occupant compartment, and features advanced ultra-high-strength boron steel, crumple zones that absorb and dissipate crash energy, and SPACE architecture that provides structural reinforcement and side-impact protection.

Police Interceptor Utility is tested for enhanced police durability, including improved cooling, specially tuned braking system, front-door tethers, and police-purposed steel wheels, tires and hubcaps that are designed to withstand the rigors of a chase.

In 1950, Ford became the first manufacturer to offer a police package vehicle.

The Interceptor name debuted on the optional 110-horsepower flathead V8 engine for 1951.

By 1961, 58 percent of police vehicles in use in the 50 largest U.S. cities were Ford models.

The Crown Victoria name was given to the Police Interceptor in 1983.

Its available police package featuring an optional 5.8-liter high-output V8.

Ford discontinued the once-ubiquitous V8-equipped Crown Victoria in 2011, and since then, its new Police Interceptors – most notably, Police Interceptor Utility – have continued to refortify law enforcement fleets.

In 2017, Ford Police Interceptor Utility alone accounted for more than half of all police vehicle sales in the United States, outselling all other police vehicles combined.

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